Empire WatchAnalysis of current world affairs with focus on gloabal struggle for social and economic justice and against racism, war, imperialism and oppression much of it brought on by US Empire and its allies

Egypt: Revolution Continues

If we were to describe the situation in Egypt in one sentence, it would be, in my view, that the revolution continues. Make no mistake: ousting of President Morsi by the military, as ominous as it is, is only in reaction to the revolutionary fervor of the Egyptian people who have not stopped pushing for their just demands for democracy and social justice since they began on this historic journey, two years ago, against all odds and difficulties, not the least of which is a superpower empire standing on the way of revolution at every turn.

CNN reported that the White House quickly huddled with the Pentagon and CIA chiefs, as well as the unreported consultation with the other part of the Pentagon which is based in Tel Aviv and calls itself the Israeli Government. The US has ordered its embassy in Cairo evacuated and there is talk of cutting aid in response to the coup against “a democratically elected president”. Obama just issued a statement expressing “concern” about “the suspension of the constitution”. Such defenders of democracy!!

While people were filling streets and squares two years ago against Mubarak, the Administration came to his defense and Clinton called on the people to go back to their homes. As the revolution continued and it became clear that Washington’s dictator could no longer be defended and kept in power, as he had been by US money, arms and political support for over three decades, they changed their tunes and moderated their rhetoric against the protesters and their demands. That’s when they put their hopes in the military to take charge, repress the revolution and continue business as usual under a more direct military rule which they planned to keep under Washington’s control. At that time, they had no problem and in fact encouraged the military to grab legislative veto power and render any civilian government that might emerge in the aftermath of the revolution toothless and powerless. That’s because they weren’t sure what they were going to get. When the dust settled and people for most part went back to their homes, Washington discovered that Morsi was no rebel and they could work with him, which in imperialist politics means he was willing to sell his nation out and continue to betray his (and Palestinian people’s) aspirations and hopes for change, as did Mubarak before him.

But, if there is one thing to be said about the Egyptian people is that they’re resilient and not about to give up on their revolution. As I said in the opening of this piece, today’s coup by Egyptian military is a testament to that. While I don’t welcome the coup, I do welcome people’s continuing their historic uprising. To be sure, the military is no friend of the people or the revolution and is in fact the medium through which imperialism has for decades imposed its will on the people of Egypt and will continue that role in future. And as long as people don’t come to terms with that and get past putting their hopes on the military, the revolution will be stymied and its goals cut short.

The good news is not the coup. The good news is that people are remaining vigilant and are not going home. As long as they’re present, the revolution will continue, and that’s a good thing.